Effect of moisture content on calculated dielectric properties of asphalt concrete pavements from ground-penetrating radar measurements

Qingqing Cao, Imad L. Al-Qadi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Moisture presence in asphalt concrete (AC) pavement is a major cause of damage to the pavement. In recent decades, an increasing need exists for non-destructive detection and monitoring of the moisture content in AC pavement. This paper provides a simulated approach to quantify the effect of internal moisture content on AC pavement dielectric properties using ground-penetrating radar (GPR). A heterogeneous numerical model was developed to simulate AC pavement with internal moisture at various saturation levels. The numerical model was validated using GPR surveys on cold-in-place recycling treated pavements. An empirical formula was derived from the simulation to correlate the dielectric constant with the moisture content for non-dry AC pavement. The results validated the proposed model and, hence, demonstrated the ability of GPR to monitor moisture variation in AC pavements.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number34
JournalRemote Sensing
Volume14
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 1 2022

Keywords

  • Asphalt concrete pavement
  • Finite-different time-domain simulation
  • Ground-penetrating radar
  • Moisture content
  • Non-destructive testing

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Earth and Planetary Sciences(all)

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